The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Kasich signs bill aimed at school security
Bill makes funding available for mental health professionals, school resource officers
Bill makes funding available for mental health professionals, school resource officer training.
Legislation that defines the role of a school resource officer and provides funding for training was signed into law by Ohio Gov. John Kasich on Aug. 3.
The bill will go into effect in 90 days.
It was introduced by Sen. John Patterson, a Democrat from Jefferson, and Rep. Sarah LaTourette, a Republican from Chester Township.
Patterson had hoped the bill would by law by the start of the school year, but said the important thing was that it was signed.
In addition to the SRO definition and funding for training, the bill also provides funding for the placement of mental health professionals in the schools and development of strategies to find alternative solutions to the expulsion of students in kindergarten through third grade.
Previously there had been no definition of an SRO, their responsibilities or the training needed.
The state was not able to provide funding to a position that was undefined.
Schools that already have an SRO will be grandfathered in under the new law. Schools without an SRO who decide to hire one or obtain state funding for one will have to follow the training procedures and job responsibilities required by the new law.
The mental health professionals outlined in the bill are certified counselors or therapists trained to deal with the issues students face.
Patterson said it is imperative that both school resource officers and mental health professionals work together to maintain a safe school environment.
The Senate unanimously passed the bill on June 6 and the House approved it with a 71-20 vote on June 27.
The bill provides $10 million to help schools fund training for SROs through a state-accredited training, $2 million to help place mental health professionals in schools, and $2 million to support an amendment added by Sen. Peggy Lehner, a Montgomery Republican, that would require schools to initiate a positive behavioral intervention and support programs to prevent the suspension and expulsion of students through third grade.
“It’s going to be far more difficult to just bounce those kids out of school,” Patterson said. “We want those kids to stay in school. The idea is especially for kids in those grades to be in school and to work with them as much as we can to help them along their way.”
Funding for the amendment will come from the State Lottery Fund and will be designated as competitive grant money which will allow schools to train staff and school support personnel to be better able to recognize a student’s need for mental health services and know how to direct them to professional counseling
This bill has been in the works for two years, Patterson said, and has support of groups including the School Resource Officers Association, Buckeye State Sheriff, Fraternal Order of Police, the Ohio Education Association and Ohio Federation of Teachers.